Concordia Weightlifting
Head Coach: Freddie Myles (3rd season)
2023 National Qualifiers: Michael Davidge, Evan Fukuhara, Nolan Graupmann, Adrian Hernandez, Gracy Johnson, Cody Monsevais.
2025 National Championships: Feb. 27 – March 2 in Columbus, Ohio.
Outlook
The Concordia logo has made its way to the biggest stages of collegiate national competition and will also be visible on the international stage in the months to come. Sacramento, Calif., native Evan Fukuhara has quickly put Concordia University, Nebraska Weightlifting on the map with his incredible abilities in the disciplines of snatch and clean and jerk. The 2024 National University Championships winner at 67 kg, Fukuhara headlines a roster of 17 athletes prepared to take on the 2024-25 season.
Head Coach Freddie Myles built both the powerlifting and weightlifting programs from the ground up and is entering his third season at the helm of the Bulldogs. In terms of both quality and quantity, the weightlifting roster has been constructed to a point where Concordia can reach a higher competitive level from a team standpoint.
“We’re having lots of improvements,” Myles said in discussing the opening month of the semester. “In the first month of the semester, we’re seeing lots of new personal records in the gym. I’ve been pleased with the work ethic and the way they support each other, which helps from the overall team improvement. We’re definitely ahead of where we were last year a significant margin.”
Fukuhara was joined at the 2024 National University Championships in Columbus, Ohio, by teammates in Michael Davidge, Nolan Graupmann, Adrian Hernandez, Gracy Johnson and Cody Monsevais. Five of the six national qualifiers return to this year’s roster. The team also welcomes Taylor Hedke, a 2024 powerlifting national qualifier, who will now compete in both weightlifting and powerlifting. The goal moving forward is for the program to ramp up its team success.
It starts with Fukuhara, now a junior. At the 2024 national championships, Fukuhara totaled 243 kg and defeated the national runner up by 15 kg. Fukuhara also won the 67 kg title at the North American Open Finals with a personal best total of 256 kg. He has qualified to compete at the 2024 Pan American Games in Cali, Colombia, while attempting to stake his claim as one of the top lifters in the world in his weight class.
“He’s definitely set the bar pretty high,” Myles said. “Since he’s come here, he’s won a national championship, won an American Open and qualified for an international team. All of those were firsts for him coming here. He’s had a tremendous improvement. After this international meet, he’s looking to move up a weight class. He can win in that heavier weight class. I think we’ll see his numbers climb pretty rapidly as he increases his weight.”
A sophomore from Coon Rapids, Iowa, Johnson will be looking to reach new heights after she placed eighth nationally last season in the 71 kg class. Johnson set new personal records for snatch, clean and jerk and for total (170 kg). As Myles said of Johnson, “I think she can climb the ladder even higher and possibly be on the podium. She’s had a great training block over the summer and has made great improvements.” On the women’s side, another addition to the team is Kenzie Houser, a two-time national qualifier for the Bulldogs in powerlifting.
A former Concordia track athlete, Taylor Hedke has hopes of reaching the podium in both weightlifting and powerlifting in 2025. Hedke experienced powerlifting nationals as a sophomore. Says the junior from Marysville, Kan., “I’m really excited just to get back out and compete. Obviously we want to place as a team in both powerlifting and weightlifting. Freddie has high hopes for us placing as a co-ed team at weightlifting nationals this year. For myself personally, I’d say (the goal) is to place at both powerlifting and weightlifting nationals.”
Graupmann placed 12th nationally at 102 kg in 2024 while totaling 213 kg. Like Taylor Hedke, Graupmann will be competing in weightlifting and powerlifting. He plans to represent Concordia at both national championships while continuing the upward trajectory of the programs.
Said Graupmann, “I think it’s been a constant upward momentum. We brought in a lot of new talent this year, and I’m excited to see where they go. I know that everyone returning is in a really good spot. Strength-wise, everyone is getting bigger and stronger. I’m excited to see where we go in the next couple of years.”
Overall, the Concordia Weightlifting team will be a youthful one. There are nine freshmen on the roster that have been recruited from the states of California, Colorado, Florida and Nebraska. They have been quickly acclimated to the program’s strenuous training regimen.
“Everyone meshed together really well and we’ve built a good team atmosphere that way,” Graupmann said. “The freshmen coming in this year have acclimated and have caught on to our values and the way we do things. We have a really great atmosphere in the weight room. Everyone has been hyping each other up. We have a lot of things coming up with team bonding and team events to really solidify that atmosphere.”
Added Taylor Hedke, “We got the top 10 finish (in powerlifting) we wanted on the women’s side. Building on that, we have a great group of girls coming in. Everyone’s ready to compete. There’s a split in the weight classes that’s happening this year that’s going to help our women’s team a lot.”
The weightlifting season is slated to officially get underway on Oct. 19 with the Nebraska State Weightlifting Championships in Omaha. The program is hoping to qualify Fukuhara and others for the prestigious American Open Finals in December. The University Weightlifting National Championships will again be held in Columbus (Feb. 27 – March 2). The complete schedule can be found HERE.